The present invention relates generally to the field of handheld computing devices. More particularly, the disclosure relates to a flexible and expandable display for a handheld computing device.
Handheld computing devices usually display data stored in memory or generated by a processor on a visual display that is slightly smaller than the size of the handheld computing device. The size of the handheld computing device is generally compact and correspondingly the visual display is significantly smaller than the size of a standard computer monitor. The small size of the screen has necessitated that handheld computing devices focus on displaying abbreviated or simplistic content.
The abbreviated or simplistic display content has not conventionally been a problem because handheld computing devices have also had limited computing power. When handheld computing devices were introduced, most people were using the devices for relatively simple applications. Traditional applications may have included an address book, a daily planner, or other similar applications that were generally not graphic intensive. These applications worked well with the smaller display screens.
However, the processing speed of handheld computing devices as well as other capabilities have been experiencing significant improvements. Handheld computing devices have improved in processor power, battery life, weight, etc. As a consequence of these improvements, handheld computing devices are now running applications that formerly could only be run on a full personal computer.
However, the amount of information that can be displayed by handheld computers is still limited to a relatively small display screen size. In fact, handheld computers have been getting more compact, and consequently so has the size of their visual display. Although the compact size offers size and weight advantages, it may be undesirable to display the full content of a screen normally displayed on a 15 inch cathode ray tube (CRT) computer monitor, on a traditional handheld computing device screen. Increasing the size of the traditional display screen would cause a corresponding increase in the size and weight of the handheld computing device.
Accordingly, there is a need for a display screen that can display data from a handheld computer on a larger screen without substantially increasing the size or weight of the handheld computing device. There is also a need for a handheld computing device having a removable, detachable display. Further, there is a need for methods of using a handheld computer to display greater amounts of image information compared with conventional displays.
It would be desirable to provide a system and/or method that provides one or more of these or other advantageous features. Other features and advantages will be made apparent from the present specification. The teachings disclosed extend to those embodiments which fall within the scope of the appended claims, regardless of whether they accomplish one or more of the aforementioned needs.